The NBA's Absolute Dominance

Chapter 165 Eastern Conference Finals vs. Western Conference Finals

Three hours later, the Bulls defeated the Knicks at home, winning 4-2 and becoming the second team to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals to face the Heat.

After the game, Jordan did not give an on-site interview, but instead hurriedly asked about the result of the Suns vs. Rockets game.

The result delighted him; the Suns defeated the Rockets at home, bringing the series back to a 3-1 lead, and the two teams will face off in a decisive Game 7 on the 21st.

After the interview, he returned to the locker room and made a special call to Barkley to praise him.

Barkley's performance was actually mediocre, scoring only 18 points and grabbing 15 rebounds.

But Kevin Johnson and A.C. Green both scored 28 and 22 points respectively, and two substitutes also scored in double figures.

The Rockets only had three players scoring in double figures, and their performance was not as good as the Suns'.

However, regarding the decisive Game 7 between the Rockets and the Suns, the media favors the Houston Rockets, who have home-court advantage.

The Rockets lost their first two home games, but then took a commanding lead and secured a match point, demonstrating remarkable resilience and earning even greater expectations from fans and the media.

Conversely, the Suns lacked ambition, losing three consecutive games after winning two away games, performing terribly, and their chances of defending their title are no longer considered good.

There was also a third game that night, Game 6, where the Jazz played the Nuggets on the road.

This was a back-to-back game, and the Jazz lost on the road. Their 3-0 lead was tied 3-3, and they will face the Nuggets in a decisive Game 7 on the 21st.

The Jazz, who had previously received high praise from the media, and their star player Karl Malone, were heavily criticized by the media after losing three games in a row.

No one was optimistic about the Jazz's chances in Game 7. Many media outlets and fans believed that the Nuggets would continue their dark horse run, becoming the biggest dark horse in league history and going all the way down.

The next day, on the morning of the 20th, the league announced that the Eastern Conference Finals would begin on May 22nd, with the Heat facing the Bulls, and the Bulls having home-court advantage.

In the morning, the Heat held a tactical meeting for the Eastern Conference Finals.

Kevin Longley said, "On the defensive end, we play a 3-2 zone defense, mainly guarding the perimeter, and focusing on double-teaming Michael Jordan."

He looked at Tang Bei and said, "Tang, I don't expect you to help defend the perimeter in the second round, but against the Bulls, you need to focus on helping defend Jordan."

"OK."

Tang Bei nodded.

Kevin Longley continued, "We only double-teamed Jordan. The other positions, including Pippen, didn't deserve our double-teaming."

"Of course, this refers to the perimeter. Once the Bulls' ball enters or gets close to the paint, the nearest player needs to double-team them."

"To counter Jordan's double-teaming, we don't use the three-point line; we double-team him as soon as he gets into the mid-range shooting area."

"On offense, everything revolves around Tang. Give him the ball and let him play one-on-one, or draw double teams and then pass it out."

"The Bulls' perimeter defense is too strong. We need to increase our movement and screen and pick-and-roll."

Meanwhile, the Bulls also held a tactical meeting.

Phil Jackson stood in front of the tactics blackboard, pointing and saying:

"We use man-to-man marking and a collapsed defensive strategy."

"The key to perimeter defense is to double-team the ball handler, press in the half-court, and cut off and lock down the passing chain between the ball handler and Tang Bei."

"We won't double-team Tang in the paint early. Once the ball is passed in, we'll immediately collapse the double-team."

"Pay attention to rotation and position changes in other positions, and remember not to give them large open spaces."

"Note that you must lock down the other four Heat players."

"On the defensive end, Michael, Scottie, you two need to keep a close eye on Glen Rice, Kevin Edwards, Steve Smith, and Dell Curry."

"Once we reduce their offensive efficiency, we've already won more than half the game. Plus, with the home advantage, we're guaranteed to win at home."

At 9 a.m. on the 21st, the league announced the All-NBA Team via NBC.

First, Tang Bei was named to the second All-Defensive Team.

This is his first time being selected for the All-Defensive Team, although only the Second Team, and the reward he was looking forward to has arrived.

"The host has completed the achievement of 'Best Second Team Defense' and has obtained one treasure: 100 Dongwang Qingxue Pills."

"This treasure has the properties of clearing impurities from the blood, preventing arteriosclerosis and thrombosis, and effectively reducing the occurrence of cerebral infarction and myocardial infarction."

"Fuck me!"

Tang Bei's eyes lit up. This was good stuff, no worse than the defensive pills.

"There aren't enough for me alone, let alone my family!"

The last scoring champion, although it was just a trophy issued by the players' union, had a fantastic reward, turning things like elbow pads from rewards into consumable items.

He was both anxious and expectant, wondering what rewards he would receive for winning honors such as the All-Defensive First Team, two All-Defensive First Teams, MVP, championship, and Finals MVP.

The defensive first team was then announced, with Hakeem Olajuwon at center, whose defensive stats and efficiency were indeed better than Olajuwon's.

Next up is the All-NBA Team. He was on the First Team last season, and he's guaranteed to be on it this year too, no doubt about it.

David Robinson is the center in the third team, so Shaquille O'Neal is not included.

Hakeem Olajuwon is the center for the second unit, and he's a shoo-in for the first team.

Sure enough, the All-NBA First Team was announced soon after, marking his second consecutive season as a member of the All-NBA First Team.

Unfortunately, I already achieved this last season, so there was no reward this time.

At noon, Tang Bei flew to Chicago with the team.

Garbo didn't go. The girl is quite busy right now. Some of the family's assets need to be separated from the family assets, and the family assets she manages also need to be handed over. She and her father, Leo Nemur, are extremely busy and don't even have time to go to school.

In addition, the wedding arrangements are being expedited, and this is being prepared by my mother, Mrs. Leslie.

At 2 PM, at the NBA headquarters in New York, David Stern convened a special meeting of the commissioner, bringing together representatives from multiple departments.

For example, the referee committee under the basketball operations department, the event management department and discipline department under the event operations department, as well as the legal department, public relations and communications department, team operations supervision department, etc.

Seated at the top of the oval conference table, David Stern scanned the department heads with a serious gaze before speaking:

"I don't want to see the same thing happen in this year's Eastern Conference Finals. I absolutely will not allow it to happen. If it does, the FBI will investigate."

These words startled everyone, and their expressions immediately turned serious.

David Stern looked at Klaus Hanks, the head of the referee committee, and asked, "Mr. Hanks, has the list of referees for the Eastern Conference Finals been released?"

Hanks is the newly appointed head of the Referees Committee this year, a person specially chosen by David Stern and whom he trusts greatly. The Referees Committee is not a primary department at NBA headquarters, nor is it an independent department; strictly speaking, its name is not the Referees Committee, but rather the Referees Operations Department.

Hanks nodded quickly and said, "Mr. President, he's out. The referee is Hugh Evans."

"OK."

David Stern nodded. Hugh Evans was the referee for the 92 NBA Finals. His error rate in crucial moments was the lowest among well-known referees in the league, and his reputation was the highest.

At this point, the head of public relations tentatively said, "Mr. President, everyone, I think the officiating standards for the Eastern Conference Finals should be stricter."

Seeing that David Stern did not immediately object, he seized the opportunity to say:
"If Tang Bei uses his strength to recklessly injure the Bulls' interior players during the game, it would be extremely unfair to the Bulls."

Currently, the media is hyping up news about Western Conference teams picking up bargains, and even speculating that the West has a chance to sweep the championship again.

Therefore, we cannot allow last year's situation to repeat itself. The Bulls cannot enter the Finals in a weakened state; that would not be in the interest of us, all our sponsors, and the broadcasters.

"Mr. Locke, how did you know it was the Bulls who made it to the Finals?" the head of the event operations department asked.

“I believe in the Bulls’ strength,” Manager Locke said firmly.

David Stern then waved his hand, and the meeting room was immediately set up. He considered the situation and said:
"We are not responsible for whether the Bulls can make it to the Finals; we are only responsible for providing a fair and just playing environment."

To be honest, at this time last year, he really, really wanted the Bulls to make it to the Finals and win three consecutive championships.

However, after failing to defend his three-peat, he believed that Jordan no longer had the chance to win a three-peat. Therefore, he was not very concerned about whether the Bulls made it to the Finals. He believed that if the Heat made it to the Finals, the viewership ratings would not be bad.

Of course, he also believes that if the Bulls enter the Finals again in a weakened state, the same situation as last year will definitely occur.

He continued, "As for the issue of officiating standards, home games certainly have an advantage, but we must not let the situation from last year happen again."

His attitude was made clear through this statement: in each team's home court, the referee should be stricter on the visiting team, which is normal practice in the NBA.

At this point, he fixed his gaze on Locke and said very sternly:

"Please remember this, everyone: if anyone dares to rig the game, as I just said, the FBI will definitely investigate, and I will show absolutely no mercy."

Upon hearing this, Manager Locke shrank back and remained silent.

In the evening, the two decisive Game 7s took place as scheduled.

Michael Jordan called Barkley before the game to encourage him, saying:
“Charles, my brother, you have to fight hard tonight. You’re the best. Hakim can’t beat you.”

Barkley said smugly, "Michael, I know I'm the best because I swept you to win the championship. You don't need to remind me."

As the man who swept Jordan in the Finals, he had an absolute psychological advantage over Jordan. No matter how Jordan criticized him, he could directly shut Jordan down with the statement, "I'm the man who swept you in the Finals to win the championship."

Jordan was furious at Barkley's words, but he couldn't lash out. He had to continue to appease Barkley and get him to put in more effort in Game 7.

He hung up the phone, stormed into the bathroom in his bedroom, slammed the door, and roared, "Barkley, fuck you, you fat pig..."

The game between the Jazz and the Nuggets started half an hour earlier and ended at 10:00. The Nuggets, who were favored by more people, ultimately lost on the road and were eliminated.

Mutombo's mentality collapsed, managing only two blocks throughout the game. The Nuggets shot just 38.4% from the field and lost the game despite having 16 more rebounds.

The Jazz played a very strong defense, committing only 6 turnovers, 9 fewer than the Nuggets.

The score was 81-91, and the Jazz advanced to the Western Conference Finals with a hard-fought victory thanks to their home court advantage.

The lack of a dramatic underdog victory has disappointed the media and many fans.

After reaching the Western Conference Finals in 92, the Jazz have once again made it to the Western Conference Finals, and Salt Lake City and the Jazz are in a sea of ​​cheers.

At 10:30, the decisive Game 7 between the Rockets and the Suns also ended.

The Rockets advanced to the Western Conference Finals with a score of 94-99 at home, where they will face the Jazz.

奥拉朱旺终于打出超级中锋的风采，轰下35分15篮板5助攻3盖帽的数据，投篮命中率54.5%。

Charles Barkley had 24 points and 15 rebounds with a 47.4% field goal percentage, which was decent, but still a level below Hakeem Olajuwon.

The Suns' overall field goal percentage was 12% lower than the Rockets', at only 39.8%. They also had 11 fewer assists, 5 fewer steals, and 4 fewer blocks, resulting in terrible defense.

After watching the game, Michael Jordan felt a chill in his heart.

He knew he probably didn't have a chance to sweep Barkley anymore. The 31-year-old Barkley was in his prime these past two years and hadn't had any injuries. The Suns' roster was also very strong. If they didn't make it to the Western Conference Finals this time, it would be very difficult for them to do so in the future.

The Rockets' roster is fully mature, and their mentality has been honed through this semifinal series. They are very likely to dominate the Western Conference in the future. With the Jazz also developing, the Suns have even less chance of winning.

"Forget it, let's take down the Heat first."

After calming down for a moment, Michael Jordan began to focus his attention on the upcoming Eastern Conference Finals.

After all, compared to Barkley, that idiot, Tang Bei was the person he hated the most.

If it weren't for Tang Bei, how could he have been swept by Barkley? If it weren't for Tang Bei, he would have already achieved a three-peat dynasty.

With the second round concluded, the East-West Conference Finals are about to begin.

Eastern Conference: Bulls vs. Heat.

Western Conference: Rockets vs. Jazz.

The front team has home-court advantage, a best-of-seven series, and a home-and-away schedule. The Eastern Conference Finals start on the 22nd, and the Western Conference Finals start on the 23rd.

The next day, the 22nd, was Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

On this day, many mainstream media outlets made various predictions about the Eastern Conference Finals and the Western Conference Finals.

NBC's predictions for advancing are: Bulls 51%, Heat 49%, Rockets 54%, and Jazz 46%.

NBC believes the Bulls have home-court advantage and are stronger than last season, so their chances of advancing are higher than the Heat's.

Regarding the Western Conference Finals, NBC believes the Rockets have shown greater resilience. They came back from losing the first two home games in the second round to win, and such teams are often the most difficult to beat.

The Jazz initially led the Nuggets 3-0 in the second round series, but then lost three straight games, forcing a Game 7. Although they eventually won the decisive Game 7, they were still not considered favorites.

Most media outlets favor the Rockets, believing they will advance to the NBA Finals.

The Eastern Conference Finals series between the Bulls and the Heat, however, presented a polarized picture.

Some media outlets are more optimistic about the Bulls, believing they are stronger than last season.

Some media outlets favor the Heat, believing that the Bulls have lost their competitiveness as Tang Bei has systematically destroyed their interior players.

(End of this chapter)